Shaft (company)#Directors
{{Short description|Japanese animation studio}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2021}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Shaft Inc.
| native_name = 株式会社シャフト
| native_name_lang = ja
| romanized_name = Kabushiki gaisha Shafuto
| logo = Shaft studio logo.svg
| logo_caption = Logo used since 2017
| image = {{Multiple image|border=infobox|perrow=2|total_width=300
| image1 = Studio Shaft head office,.jpg
| alt1 =
| image2 = Shaft 2024-10-30.jpg
| alt2 = }}
| image_caption = Head office in Suginami
| foundation = {{start date and age|1975|09|01}}
| founder = Hiroshi Wakao
| location = Kamiigusa
| location_city = Suginami, Tokyo{{efn|Both head office and production studio}}
| location_country = Japan
| origins =
| key_people = Mitsutoshi Kubota (CEO)
| area_served =
| industry = Japanese animation
| products =
| revenue =
| operating_income =
| net_income =
| equity = ¥ 10,000,000
| parent =
| subsid =
| divisions = Former:
Niigata{{efn|An animation substudio located in Niigata, which is only known to have ever been credited for one episode of a series in 1989.{{Cite AV media |title= Idol Densetsu Eriko|language= Japanese|script-quote=ja:動画 - 新潟シャフト|trans-quote= In-between animation - Niigata Shaft|time=ending credits; episode 7}}}}
Current:
Digital@Shaft{{efn|Photography, painting, and visual effects division established in 2004. Around 2020, the CG group within Digital@Shaft split, with some staying as part of the Digital@Shaft team and others establishing a new department. In 2021, the division formed a background art team, which also separated into its own department later that year.}}
Shaft Ten{{efn|Shaft Ten, the licensing division and online shop operated by the studio, founded in 2017.}}
CGI Animation Room{{efn|{{nihongo|Shaft CGI Animation Room|シャフトCGI Animation Room}}, a CGI division established circa 2020, and spun-off of Digital@Shaft.}}
Art Section{{efn|Shaft Art Section, a background art division separated from Digital@Shaft in 2021.}}
Shaft Aoi{{efn|Shaft Shizuoka Studio Aoi, a substudio located in Shizuoka founded in 2022.}}
| owner =
| homepage = {{URL|http://www.shaft-web.co.jp}}
| footnotes =
}}
Shaft Inc. (stylized as SHAFT; {{langx|ja|株式会社シャフト}}, Hepburn: {{transliteration|ja|Hepburn|Kabushiki-gaisha Shafuto}}), also known as Shaft Animation Studio, is a Japanese animation studio headquartered in Suginami, Tokyo, and founded in 1975. Since 2004, the studio's productions and staff have been broadly influenced by director Akiyuki Shinbo, whose visual style and avant-garde cinematography are featured in works including Hidamari Sketch (2007), Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei (2007), the Monogatari series (2009–present), Puella Magi Madoka Magica (2011), Nisekoi (2014), and March Comes In Like a Lion (2016).
History
=1975–1984: Early sub-contracting work=
Shaft was founded as a yūgen-gaisha on September 1, 1975, by ex-Mushi Production employee Hiroshi Wakao.{{cite web |last1=Loveridge |first1=Lynzee |title=SHAFT Opens 'Madogatari' Exhibit to Celebrate 40th Anniversary |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2015-07-03/shaft-opens-madogatari-exhibit-to-celebrate-40th-anniversary/.90048 |website=Anime News Network |access-date=August 13, 2020 |language=en |date=July 3, 2015 |archive-date=November 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201130085714/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2015-07-03/shaft-opens-madogatari-exhibit-to-celebrate-40th-anniversary/.90048 |url-status=live }} Much of the company's early work was sub-contracting work for larger animation studios,{{cite web|url= https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2017-01-18/the-secret-of-studio-shaft/.110526|title= The Secret of Studio SHAFT|website= AnimeNewsNetwork|date= January 18, 2017|author= Creamer, Nick|access-date= April 29, 2020|archive-date= June 15, 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200615203901/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2017-01-18/the-secret-of-studio-shaft/.110526|url-status= live}} which includes credits to cel painting and color coordination work, such as with Brave Raideen (1975–76),{{Cite AV media |title= Brave Raideen|language= ja|script-quote=ja:仕上 - シャフト|trans-quote= Painting - Shaft|time=ending credits; episodes 27–50}} and occasionally credits as an assistant production studio for projects including Pierrot's Urusei Yatsura: Only You (1983).{{Cite AV media |title= Urusei Yatsura: Only You|language= ja|script-quote=ja:アニメーション制作協力 - シャフト|trans-quote= Animation production assistance - Shaft|time=ending credits}} A large portion of the company's early painting work was contracted under Sunrise productions.
=1984–2004: Move to animation production=
In 1984, Shaft was sub-contracted by studio Zuiyo to animate the Elves of the Forest television series, marking the company's first project as a primary animation studio.{{efn|Note: While Shaft is credited for "Production assistance", Zuiyo itself (in 1984) did not have its own animation department, so Shaft is the studio that was outsourced to for main animation work.{{Cite AV media |title= Elves of the Forest|language= ja|script-quote=ja:制作協力 - シャフト|trans-quote= Production assistance - Shaft|time=ending credits}}}} Not until 1987, however, with the release of the Yume kara, Samenai original video animation (OVA), did the studio release its first wholly-original production. In the same year, the studio produced the first episode of the Taiman Blues: Naoto Shimizu-hen OVA series.
For the next several years, the company returned to sub-contracting work based on animation production services rather than its painting services, such as with the Mushi Production film Ushiro no Shoumen Daare (1991).{{Cite AV media |title= Ushiro no Shoumen Dare|language= ja|script-quote=ja:制作協力 - シャフト|trans-quote= Production assistance - Shaft|time=ending credits}} In 1995, the studio moved to producing full-length series, starting with Juuni Senshi Bakuretsu Eto Ranger. By this time, several directors and animators had joined the studio, such as Toshimasa Suzuki and Kenji Yasuda; however, one of the most important series in the company's early history was an outsourcing contract they took on in 1996: Legend of Crystania: The Chaos Ring, which began the studio's relationship with director Ryūtarō Nakamura and studio Triangle Staff.{{Cite web|url= https://gigazine.net/news/20160916-playback-ryutaro-nakamura/|script-title= ja:中村隆太郎監督の作品をこれからも楽しんでいきたいという思いが詰まった「プレイバック中村隆太郎」レポート|trans-title= "Playback Ryūtarō Nakamura", a Report Filled with the Desire to Continue to Enjoy the Work of Director Ryūtarō Nakamura|website= Gigazine|date= September 16, 2016|access-date= April 12, 2022|language= Japanese|archive-date= April 5, 2023|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230405054610/https://gigazine.net/news/20160916-playback-ryutaro-nakamura/|url-status= live}} The second episode of the OVA series was outsourced to Shaft, and both Nakamura and Triangle Staff's president (Yoshimi Asari) visited Shaft while delivering the episode's storyboard. Mitsutoshi Kubota, a studio color designer turned production manager at the time, met with the two, and from then they would collaborate on several more projects together, such as Shaft producing an episode of Nakamura and Triangle Staff's Kino's Journey television series, and Nakamura later directing a television series and Kino's Journey film at the studio.
In 1998, Radix produced a 26-episode adaptation of Kia Asamiya's manga Silent Möbius; and although produced as a Radix production, Shaft was contracted as an outsourcing company for the entire series, and according to Kubota served as the production site for the series (rather than Radix).{{sfn|Shinbo|2012|p=240}} Shaft was also responsible for selecting the staff, and chief director Hideki Tonokatsu worked from the studio.{{sfn|Shinbo|2012|p=240}} Nobuyuki Takeuchi left Studio Giants in the early 90s, and Shaft offered him a seat at the studio as a freelancing animator; and for Silent Möbius, he took on the role of "animation director" (not referring to the correction of drawings).{{sfn|Shinbo|2012|p=240}} Kubota felt that Takeuchi would eventually play a central role in Shaft's works succeeding the series, and he eventually became an integral part of many of the productions made with Shinbo.{{sfn|Shinbo|2012|p=240}}
Shaft entered co-operations with studios Gainax and TNK around 2000. The first of the productions under these co-operations was Mahoromatic (2001) and its sequel Mahoromatic: Something More Beautiful (2002–03), both with Gainax and under the direction of Hiroyuki Yamaga.{{cite web |title=History |url=http://www.shaft-web.co.jp:80/history.html |publisher=Shaft |access-date=December 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613094355/http://www.shaft-web.co.jp/history.html |archive-date=June 13, 2007 |language=ja |url-status=dead }} 2002 was also the release of the studio's production with TNK, G-On Riders. In 2003 and 2004, the studio produced an adaptation of the visual novel Popotan, and later This Ugly yet Beautiful World, an original series co-produced with Gainax and director Shouji Saeki. The development of This Ugly yet Beautiful World began when members of Mahoromatic said that they wanted to do another work with the team, which included both the voice actors and staff members.{{sfn|Suzuki|Harada|Kirikata|2004|pp=16-17}} While searching for scriptwriting and directing staff to work on the project, Saeki and Gainax producer Hiroki Satou mentioned that it would involve much of the Mahoromatic staff to those they invited, such as director Shin Itagaki and writer Sumio Uetake.{{sfn|Suzuki|Harada|Kirikata|2004|p=63}}
=2004–2017: Kubota and Team Shinbo era=
In 2004, Wakao was succeeded as Shaft's representative director by Kubota, though he remained a chairman on the studio's board. After watching The SoulTaker (2001) and Le Portrait de Petit Cossette (2004), both works directed by Akiyuki Shinbo, Kubota decided that he wanted to work with Shinbo to create a uniquely identifiable brand for the studio.{{cite web|url= https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2016-11-08/interview-studio-shaft-president-mitsutoshi-kubota/.108592|title= Interview: Studio SHAFT president Mitsutoshi Kubota|website= AnimeNewsNetwork|author= Jones, Evan|date= November 8, 2016|access-date= April 29, 2020|archive-date= December 27, 2019|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191227075147/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2016-11-08/interview-studio-shaft-president-mitsutoshi-kubota/.108592|url-status= live}} In October 2004, the studio animated its first production with Shinbo as director, Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase, and he began serving as an executive director and mentor to the studio's staff.
Shaft's final co-production with Gainax came in 2005 with He Is My Master. The same year saw the first animated production under the influence of "Team Shinbo", a director trio consisting of Shinbo, Shin Oonuma, and Tatsuya Oishi, who played a vital role in the studio's early stylistic decisions. Shinbo had invited both Oonuma and Oishi to direct episodes under him having seen their work under him on previous projects outside of Shaft.{{sfn|Maeda|Hiraiwa|2007|p=1}} The next two years also saw the release of the REC (2006) and Kino's Journey: Country of Illness -For You- (2007), the aforementioned series directed by Ryūtarō Nakamura, which would be the last series produced by Shaft not to feature any involvement by Shinbo for more than a decade.
During the mid-to-late 2000s, the studio brought on a number of new directors and creators, including Ryouki Kamitsubo, Naoyuki Tatsuwa, Kenichi Ishikura, Yukihiro Miyamoto, Shinichi Omata, Tomoyuki Itamura, and Gekidan Inu Curry. Kamitsubo and Oonuma, however, left by the end of the decade, with the latter joining Silver Link where he established himself in a similar role to Shinbo's.
In 2009, Shinbo and Oishi directed Bakemonogatari, which was later characterized as a hallmark of the studio's unique aesthetics. It gained a cult-like following among fans in both Japan and the West for its narrative and "visually striking" animation and artistic qualities.{{Cite web|url= https://www.thenerdmag.com/why-you-should-watch-the-monogatari-anime-series/|title= Why You Should Watch the Monogatari Anime Series|website= The Nerd Mag|date= October 10, 2019|access-date= October 13, 2020|archive-date= October 14, 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201014081645/https://www.thenerdmag.com/why-you-should-watch-the-monogatari-anime-series/|url-status= live}}{{cite web|url= https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/the-list/2012-09-08|title= The List - 8 Most Visually Striking Anime Productions|website= Anime News Network|author= Loveridge, Lynzee|date= September 8, 2012|access-date= October 13, 2020|archive-date= October 17, 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201017224950/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/the-list/2012-09-08|url-status= live}}{{cite web|url= https://www.funimation.com/blog/2020/05/22/the-works-of-shaft-from-monogotari-madoka-magica-march-comes-in-like-a-lion/|title= The Works of Shaft, From Monogatari to Madoka Magica|website= Funimation|author= Funimation|date= May 22, 2020|access-date= October 11, 2020|archive-date= October 30, 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201030163853/https://www.funimation.com/blog/2020/05/22/the-works-of-shaft-from-monogotari-madoka-magica-march-comes-in-like-a-lion/|url-status= live}} Polygon named it as the series that "pushed studio Shaft into the spotlight",{{Cite web|url= https://www.polygon.com/2019/8/27/20828051/bakemonogatari-studio-shaft-best-anime|title= Bakemonogatari pushed studio Shaft into the spotlight|website= Polygon|author= Inoa, Christopher|date= August 27, 2019|access-date= July 29, 2020|archive-date= November 8, 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201108012124/https://www.polygon.com/2019/8/27/20828051/bakemonogatari-studio-shaft-best-anime|url-status= live}} and the series was chosen as the "best anime series of 2009" by the Tokyo Anime Award Festival in 2017.{{Cite web|author=Schley, Matt|date=March 27, 2017|title=Anime Festival Ranks Top 100 Anime of Last 100 Years|url=https://otakuusamagazine.com/anime-festival-ranks-top-100-anime-of-last-100-years/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413204632/https://otakuusamagazine.com/anime-festival-ranks-top-100-anime-of-last-100-years/|archive-date=April 13, 2020|access-date=October 13, 2020|website=Otaku USA}} Following Bakemonogatari, the studio produced yet another critical and financial hit two years later with Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Madoka Magica is regarded by several publications and critics as one of the greatest anime productions of all time,{{Cite web |url=http://www.uk-anime.net/anime/Puella_Magi_Madoka_Magica_-_Complete_Series_Collection.html |title=Anime Review: Puella Magi Madoka Magica - Complete Series Collection |last=Hanley |first=Andy |date=October 22, 2012 |publisher=UK Anime Network |access-date=December 26, 2020 |archive-date=January 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112042400/http://www.uk-anime.net/anime/Puella_Magi_Madoka_Magica_-_Complete_Series_Collection.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/puella-magi-madoka-magica/vol-3 |title=Puella Magi Madoka Magica: Vol. 3 Blu-ray |last=Bertschy |first=Zac |date=June 13, 2012 |publisher=Anime News Network |access-date=December 26, 2020 |archive-date=October 30, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171030033338/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/puella-magi-madoka-magica/vol-3 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/preview-guide/2020/winter/magia-record-puella-magi-madoka-magica-side-story/.155004|title=Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story|date=January 4, 2020|publisher=Anime News Network|access-date=December 26, 2020|archive-date=April 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414163921/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/preview-guide/2020/winter/magia-record-puella-magi-madoka-magica-side-story/.155004|url-status=live}} and the series' financial and critical success spawned a franchise consisting of several films, television series, and games produced in part or in whole by Shaft. Along with the Monogatari series, Madoka Magica is considered to be one of the most financially successful anime products in Japan, with both series maintaining the highest average sales of DVDs, Blu-Rays, and re-releases in Japan.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=18}} In 2012, the studio returned to animating the Monogatari series with Nisemonogatari, albeit with director Tomoyuki Itamura in place of Oishi. Itamura and Shinbo produced a subsequent Monogatari season every year up until Zoku Owarimonogatari (2018), which is the only Monogatari season to feature Shinbo as the sole director.
The early-to-mid 2010s brought more changes to the studio's creative staff and the studio itself. For one, 2015 was the year Shaft reorganized from a yūgen-gaisha to a kabushiki-gaisha.{{Cite web|url= https://www.shaft-web.co.jp/company/|script-title= ja:会社概要|trans-title= Company Profile|website= Shaft|access-date= February 13, 2022|language= Japanese|archive-date= January 20, 2022|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220120085747/https://www.shaft-web.co.jp/company/|url-status= live}} Several directors also ended up leaving around this time, such as Kenichi Ishikura after serving as assistant director on Mahō Sensei Negima! Anime Final in 2011, Shinichi Omata around 2012, and Naoyuki Tatsuwa after he directed Gourmet Girl Graffiti in 2015. A number of other notable directors were brought into the studio around this time, however, such as directors Yuki Yase, Kenjirou Okada, Hajime Ootani, and Midori Yoshizawa. Tatsuya Oishi disappeared from the public spotlight in the early 2010s after he began production on the Kizumonogatari film trilogy, which was released in 2016 and 2017.{{Cite web|url= https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/kizumonogatari-i/tekketsu-hen/sub.blu-ray/.99084|title= Review - Kizumonogatari I: Tekketsu-hen|website= Anime News Network|author= Creamer, Nick|date= February 26, 2016|access-date= April 16, 2021|archive-date= April 16, 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210416212505/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/kizumonogatari-i/tekketsu-hen/sub.blu-ray/.99084|url-status= live}} Shaft's animation work on the trilogy has been praised as being uniquely experimental with 2D and CG effects, which some reviewers described as not always mixing well, but has nonetheless been called "gorgeous."{{Cite web|url= https://animeuknews.net/2019/06/kizumonogatari-part-1-tekketsu-review/|title= Kizumonogatari Part 1: Tekketsu Review|website= Anime UK News|date= June 7, 2019|access-date= April 16, 2021|archive-date= April 16, 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210416212506/https://animeuknews.net/2019/06/kizumonogatari-part-1-tekketsu-review/|url-status= live}}{{Cite web|url= https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/kizumonogatari-iii/reiketsu/blu-ray/.114812|title= Review - Kizumonogatari III: Reiketsu|author= Creamer, Nick|website= Anime News Network|date= April 15, 2017|access-date= April 16, 2021|archive-date= April 16, 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210416212504/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/kizumonogatari-iii/reiketsu/blu-ray/.114812|url-status= live}}
In the late 2010s, a number of other creative staff left the studio. Yuki Yase left after directing The Beheading Cycle: The Blue Savant and the Nonsense Bearer (2016–17), taking animation producer Kousuke Matsunaga with him to work on Fire Force at David Production (as well as CG director Shinya Takano and at-the-time production assistants Reo Honjouya and Hisashi Sugawara); Tomoyuki Itamura, who had directed the rest of the Monogatari series after Oishi's commitment to Kizumonogatari, left after the production of Owarimonogatari II (2017); Izumi Takizawa, a color designer with the studio since the late 90s, followed Itamura.{{Cite web|url= https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2021-03-28/the-case-study-of-vanitas-manga-gets-tv-anime-this-summer-by-bones/.171228|title= The Case Study of Vanitas Manga Gets TV Anime This Summer by BONES|website= Anime News Network|author= Hodgkins, Crystalyn|date= March 28, 2021|access-date= April 20, 2021|archive-date= June 5, 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210605130930/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2021-03-28/the-case-study-of-vanitas-manga-gets-tv-anime-this-summer-by-bones/.171228|url-status= live}}
=2017–present: Post-Team Shinbo=
In 2017, directors Kenjirou Okada and Nobuyuki Takeuchi directed their debuts as series/film directors with March Comes In like a Lion (2016–18) and Fireworks (2017), but the following year experienced a hiatus from the animation industry. The film version of Zoku Owarimonogatari was the studio's only original, non-continuing release that year, and its televised release was the studio's only main project the following year. The studio was, however, outsourced to for an episode of Tezuka Productions' adaptation of The Quintessential Quintuplets (2019).{{Cite web|url= https://news.livedoor.com/article/detail/17626643/|script-title= ja:INTERVIEW アニメに無駄なシーンは一切ない。『五等分の花嫁』制作陣が明かす伏線回収のヒミツ|trans-title= INTERVIEW There Are no Useless Scenes in Anime: The Production Team of The Quintessential Quintuplets Reveals the Secret of Collective Foreshadowing|website= Livedoor News|language= Japanese|date= January 8, 2020|access-date= February 12, 2022|archive-date= February 12, 2022|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220212063000/https://news.livedoor.com/article/detail/17626643/|url-status= live}} The entirety of the episode was produced at Shaft, with Midori Yoshizawa as episode director and a majority of the Shaft production team working on the episode, including the studio's colorists, animators, and photographers (the episode is also the only episode to feature a separate photography director, that being Shaft's Rei Egami). One version of the story that led to Shaft's involvement with the work was that TBS producer Junichirou Tanaka met CEO Kubota at a dinner party once and had asked on his knees for Shaft's help in producing the first half of the series' 11th episode, but during conversation Kubota noted that he knew of the issues with the production and decided that Shaft would be capable of producing the entire episode. Alternatively, in another interview, Tanaka said that Tezuka Productions hadn't received enough time to produce the series, so he tried phoning a number of production companies and eventually landed on Shaft (who animated Hidamari Sketch, another TBS-produced anime) and Kubota accepted the offer to contribute key animation only for the A-part (first half) of the episode.{{Cite web |url=https://artistunknown.info/2023/08/04/interview-with-quintessential-quintuplets-tv-special-staff-at-otakon-2023/|title= Interview with Quintessential Quintuplets TV Special Staff at Otakon 2023|author=Nate "Kbnet"|date= August 4, 2023|website= Artist Unknown|access-date= August 5, 2023}} Later, Tanaka asked Kubota if Shaft could produce the entire episode, and since the two companies had history, and Kubota was on friendly terms with producer Hiroshi Oosawa form Tezuka Productions, Shaft eventually agreed to produce the entire episode. Series director Satoshi Kuwabara drew the episode's storyboards but left the production of the episode entirely up to Yoshizawa and Shaft.
In 2020, Shaft returned to producing full-length series with Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story, an adaptation of a spin-off mobile game series based on the studio's Madoka Magica franchise. It was the first series since 2007 not to be directed in part by Akiyuki Shinbo (although he served as an animation supervisor), and was instead chief directed by Doroinu of Gekidan Inu Curry, one of the original series' alternate space designers. Shaft's second and final project of the year, Assault Lily Bouquet, was also the first time since 2007 that Shinbo had not been involved with one of the studio's main projects entirely. Bouquet was instead directed by former Gainax member Shouji Saeki and Shaft member Hajime Ootani.
Shinbo returned to the director's chair in 2021 with his adaptation of Pretty Boy Detective Club, which he co-directed alongside Ootani. The series served as the debut for Shaft's CGI animation division,The ending credits list {{nihongo|Shaft CGI Animation Room|シャフトCGI Animation Room}} for the series' {{nihongo|3DCG Work|3DCG制作}}. as well as the Umegumi division.The ending credits list {{nihongo|Shaft Umegumi|シャフト梅組}} for {{nihongo|Work|制作}} for the series' opening credits animation. The second season of Magia record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story later that year also debuted the company's background art division, albeit listed under Digital@Shaft, before being given their own department name in the third season of the series in early 2022.The ending credits list SHAFT Artsection as one of the background art teams on the series. The company opened a branch studio in Shizuoka (which is also the first animation studio in Shizuoka Prefecture),{{Cite Tweet|number= 1535086851530182657|script-title=ja:【お知らせ】静岡に新スタジオをオープン致しました！|trans-title= [Notice] We have opened a new studio in Shizuoka!|date= June 10, 2022|access-date= June 10, 2022|user= shaft_official}} with a few of the staff members from the head office moving to the city in order to establish operations and train new staff. Veteran color designer Yasuko Watanabe, who joined the company in 2000, became the branch studio's chief. In 2021, a fourth Madoka Magica film titled Walpurgisnacht: Rising was announced to be in production.{{cite web |last1=Hodgkins |first1=Crystalyn |title=Madoka Magica Gets New Anime Film as Sequel to 2013 Rebellion Film |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2021-04-25/madoka-magica-gets-new-anime-film-as-sequel-to-2013-rebellion-film/.172103 |website=Anime News Network |access-date=April 25, 2021 |language=en |date=April 25, 2021 |archive-date=April 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425094136/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2021-04-25/madoka-magica-gets-new-anime-film-as-sequel-to-2013-rebellion-film/.172103 |url-status=live }}
At the end of 2021, and following into 2022, the studio produced a short series based on the Assault Lily franchise entitled Assault Lily Fruits; and in March of that year, completed the Magia Record series with a four-episode finale. In July of that year, the studio produced Luminous Witches and RWBY: Ice Queendom jointly. In 2023, a special based on The Quintessential Quintuplets was announced to be produced at the studio. Prior to the release of the 2022 film, the show's producers had no intention of making another anime based on the project; however, they changed their minds upon seeing the positive reception towards the film.{{cite magazine |editor= Satou, Junpei |title= Megami Magazine June 2023|magazine= Megami Magazine|type= |series= |language= Japanese|publisher= Gakken|publication-date= April 28, 2023|department={{lang|ja|小倉充俊Pインタビュー}} [Producer Mitsutoshi Ogura Interview]}} The reason to produce the new project at Shaft was mainly due to the popularity of the first season's 11th episode, which Shaft produced as a gross outsource.{{cite magazine |editor= Satou, Junpei |title= Megami Magazine July 2023|magazine= Megami Magazine|type= |series= |language= Japanese|publisher= Gakken|publication-date= May 30, 2023|department={{lang|ja|宮本幸裕×松川裕也インタビュー}} [Yukihiro Miyamoto x Yuuya Matsukawa Interview]}}
2023 saw no new releases from the studio aside from the Quintuplets special. However, while the studio did not produce its own works, it was busy assisting other companies with theirs. Of those, the most notable collaboration happened between Shaft and Bug Films. The studio was producing its first series, Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead, and Shaft was asked to assist with part of the production of the series at the start of the third episode (and ending with the fifth episode), according to Bug Films CEO Hiroaki Kojima.{{Cite Tweet|number=1680495741343789056|user= kojima2019|author= Kojima, Hiroaki|date= July 16, 2023|script-title=ja:ご視聴ありがとうございました！ {{!}} 制作協力のSHAFTさまは#3からの作画や撮影などにご協力いただいております。 {{!}} 大感謝！！ {{!}} 来週もよろしくお願いいたします|trans-title= Thank you for viewing! SHAFT has been in production cooperation with the animation and compositing since #3. Thank you very much!! Thank you for your continued support next week}}
Noticeably, Shinbo's involvement at the studio lessened following the turn of the decade. Whereas he had previously been involved in every major production since 2004 (with the exception of their co-productions with Gainax and the two works directed by Ryūtarō Nakamura), various other affiliated directors began to take up the mantle{{emdash}}most notably Miyamoto and Saeki. Animator Kazuya Shiotsuki, who joined just before Shinbo was invited to Shaft, noted that many of the staff from that time period became the {{nihongo|"Children of Shinbo"|新房チルドレン}}{{Cite Tweet|number=1687660248008429568|user=kbnet_|title= Sure, it was「新房チルドレン」|date= August 4, 2023}} in that his influence extended further than just to the directors, and that the team as a whole (including animators such as himself) were broadly influenced by the values he displayed. With the new generation of staff members joining in the early 2020s, as Shinbo had decreased his overall output, many of the staff at the studio were instead being influenced by Saeki and, according to Shiotsuki, Yasuomi Umetsu, who has been working on a project at the studio for several years.
In early 2024, a new adaptation of the Monogatari series, specifically the Off and Monster Season series of novels, was announced with much of the series core staff returning and a July release date. Pre-production of the series started in fall of 2022 following the end of Luminous Witches and RWBY: Ice Queendom when Aniplex producer Tatsuya Ishikawa approached the studio about continuing the adaptation.{{Cite magazine|magazine= CUT|editor= Yasuda, Kinako|title= CUT July 2024|publisher= rockin-on|date= June 19, 2024|language= Japanese|department= {{lang|ja|新房昭之インタビュー}} [Akiyuki Shinbo Interview]}} Agreeing, studio president Kubota selected Midori Yoshizawa, who had been directing at Shaft for nearly a decade by that point, as the new series director under Shinbo. The same year, Shaft was announced to be producing an adaptation of HundredBurger's A Ninja and an Assassin Under One Roof manga series.
Style
=Visual style=
Directors Akiyuki Shinbo, Shin Oonuma, and Tatsuya Oishi, who formed "Team Shinbo", are essentially responsible for defining Shaft's production culture and experimental stylistic visuals in the mid-to-late 2000s. They each brought separate stylistic strengths that contributed to the eventual "Shaft style" the studio embraced, despite the fact that neither Oonuma nor Oishi had much prior experience as directors. Oonuma and Oishi's success with the studio is in part due to the "mentorship" system created at Shaft, which was centered around Shinbo.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=20-21}} The two former directors would work under Shinbo and the Shaft system as episode directors and storyboard artists until they were promoted to series directors with Shinbo maintaining a supervising role over them.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=20-21}} In turn, they, too, could begin mentoring other directors; in particular, Oonuma mentored Yukihiro Miyamoto, Tomoyuki Itamura, and Naoyuki Tatsuwa, and Oishi's influence has been exerted across the Shaft studio as a whole (and most likely Itamura, who took over the Monogatari series from Oishi).{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=21}} Team Shinbo, Miyamoto, and Itamura's styles within Shaft as a whole tend to be more experimental in nature, whereas Tatsuwa was the sole director who took a more grounded approach to the series he was involved with (while still maintaining Shaft's style).{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=25}}
Several techniques that the studio's directors still employ were popularized by Team Shinbo, such as the usage of ostentatious or simple backgrounds and tones, unique editing cuts, flat color contrasts, the insertion of real-world objects into the animated medium, monochromatic color schemes, minimalistic and abstract backgrounds, extreme changes in background art, and sharp color contrasts. which are used to facilitate certain surrealistic narratives and imagery, but despite this, consistently exist through each of the studio's productions.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=7}} Miyamoto brought to the studio sharp color contrasts and changing color palettes, which Itamura was stylistically influenced by; Itamura himself also created his own style defined by the usage of "chapter breaks" and paper cutouts.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=24}} Tatsuwa, in contrast to the others, maintained series with less visual surrealism, albeit he continued to use several of the stylistic elements from the other directors.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=25}} One of the studio's most well-known stylistic insertions, the so-called head-tilt, has also been acknowledged by Shinbo as one of the studio's staples.{{Cite web|url= https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-feature/2017/09/02-1/a-monogatari-art-exhibition-part-two|title= A Monogatari Art Exhibition, Part 2|author= Creamer, Nick|website= Crunchyroll|date= September 2, 2017|access-date= February 7, 2021|archive-date= January 1, 2022|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220101074616/https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-feature/2017/09/02-1/a-monogatari-art-exhibition-part-two|url-status= live}}
Miyamoto brought to Shaft the art troupe Gekidan Inu Curry in 2008 during (Zoku) Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei, and the duo's style greatly influenced the studio's animation style as a whole, which later defined the Madoka Magica franchise that Miyamoto and Shinbo directed two years later.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=23}}
=Narrative style=
Shaft's work culture has also influenced the narrative writings of the studio's productions, which have been described as existing "somewhere between comedy and despair",{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=6}} which can be best seen through the works of director Miyamoto, who has headed some of the studio's most depressive series, and also their most comedic.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=23}} The studio's works oftentimes also include unconventional characters and experimentation within the genre of the series the studio produces, while also diverging from the expectations of the audience.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=7}}
=In-house departments=
Following Wakao's retirement in 2004, Kubota decided to restructure the studio's system itself.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=18}} While the arrival of Shinbo, Oonuma, and Oishi was a part of this restructuring, Kubota also founded Shaft's in-house photography, painting, and visual effects division, which would move the already-existing painting team, in 2004. The division, named Digital@Shaft, made its first appearance on Gakuen Alice episode 4, which was outsourced to Shaft.{{Cite AV media |title= Gakuen Alice|language= ja|script-quote=ja:仕上 - DIGITAL@SHAFT|trans-quote= Painting - Digital@Shaft|time=ending credits; episode 4}} The new department reorganized certain staff members in the studio and hired new recruits interested in the newly formed photography team, the latter of which includes current chiefs of the department Rei Egami and Takayuki Aizu.Shaft Shizuoka Studio Aoi display, part of the {{nihongo|Mirai Innovation Design Exhibit|ミライイノベーションデザイン展}} at the {{nihongo|Shizuoka City Cultural and Creative Industry Promotion Center|静岡市文化・クリエイティブ産業振興センター}}. October 12, 2024, to November 10, 2024. Shinichirou Etou, who had been working at the company for three years as a production assistant, was asked to set up the department due to his experience in CG from when he attended {{ill|Japan Electronics College|ja|日本電子専門学校}}.
Shaft opened a licensing division in 2017 which manages an online shop {{endash}}Shaft Ten{{endash}} selling Blu-Rays, production materials, and other merchandise for series the company produces, as well as for managing the licenses of these goods and works.{{Cite web|url= https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2018-04-28/shaft-art-exhibit-highlights-magia-record-monogatari-series-fate-extra-last-encore/.130941|title= Shaft Art Exhibit Highlights Magia Record, Monogatari Series, Fate/EXTRA: Last Encore|author= Sherman, Jennifer|date= April 28, 2018|website= Anime News Network|access-date= September 21, 2021|archive-date= September 21, 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210921065700/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2018-04-28/shaft-art-exhibit-highlights-magia-record-monogatari-series-fate-extra-last-encore/.130941|url-status= live}} According to division manager Kouji Tanoue, president Kubota and himself intend to grow the division's business capabilities in order to support the studio's ventures and human resource needs.
In August 2020, Shaft posted a recruitment notice for 3DCG animation staff,{{Cite web|url= https://www.shaft-web.co.jp/news/|script-title= ja:スタッフ募集のおしらせ|trans-title= Notice of Recruitment of Staff|website= Shaft|date= August 2, 2020|access-date= July 26, 2021|title= SHAFT Animation Studio|archive-date= July 26, 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210726214000/https://www.shaft-web.co.jp/news/|url-status= live}} and the Shaft CGI Animation Room (a division spun-off from Digital@Shaft) debuted in the studio's Pretty Boy Detective Club series the following year. Etou had left the company in 2017, but when he heard that the studio was creating a 3DCG department, he rejoined the studio and intends to make the department a pillar of Shaft productions within 5 to 10 years. Pretty Boy Detective Club also used the name Shaft Umegumi for its opening animation production credit, a humorous title given to director Yasuomi Umetsu and part of his team at the studio who produced the opening while working on their own project, the then-unannounced Virgin Punk.{{Cite web |url=http://nailwonder.blog44.fc2.com/blog-date-202409.html|script-title=ja:次回監督作品・解禁です|trans-title= My Next Directorial Work: Now Revealed|language= Japanese|website= FC2 Blog|author-last= Umetsu|author-first=Yasuomi|date= September 17, 2024|access-date= September 17, 2024}}
In 2021, Digital@Shaft formed a background art team as well.{{Cite AV media|title= Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story - The Eve of Awakening|language=ja|script-quote=ja: 背景 - DIGITAL@SHAFT|trans-quote= Background art - DIGITAL@SHAFT|time=ending credits, episodes 1–8}} Art director Hisaharu Iijima, a common collaborator of the studio's since 2007, and of Shinbo's since 2004, as well as the CEO and president of his own studio (Ryuubidou) was employed by the studio as a technical advisor for the art department.
=Production methods=
Beyond the in-house culture the studio emphasizes in its works, Shaft has also emphasized using a common workflow from project to project to ease the transition from production to production. The purpose of such commonality between productions is to allow for consistency and the continuity of Shaft's style between productions. While this system allows for Shaft's style to manifest throughout each of their productions, it also allows for more creative freedoms across all individuals working with the studio, such as Shinbo's philosophy of "mix[ing] participating staffer’s feelings".{{cite web|date=November 15, 2016|title=Interview: Akiyuki Shinbo (Animage February 2005/Vol 320)|url=https://wavemotioncannon.com/2016/11/15/interview-akiyuki-shinbo-animage-february-2005vol-320/|access-date=April 29, 2020|website=Wave Motion Cannon|translator-last=Park|translator-first=Hyun|archive-date=February 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217133850/https://wavemotioncannon.com/2016/11/15/interview-akiyuki-shinbo-animage-february-2005vol-320/|url-status=live}} Madoka Magica screenwriter Gen Urobuchi described the work environment as giving him a level of freedom he'd never had before, and that "I did not think I could have written this screenplay in any other place", and both original character designer Ume Aoki and alternate space designers Gekidan Inu Curry have expressed similar perspectives.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=26}} Although anime is a collaborative process, the signature style of Shaft can best be attributed to the whole of the studio and its members rather than a single individual, and the artistic freedoms across the entire production line allow for the convergence of different staff members and their ideas to freely explore the medium which they work in.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=27}} Director Midori Yoshizawa mentioned that during the production of Magia Record, the directors consulted with the animators in the company and expressed the idea that the animators themselves could change the storyboards for action scenes if they could come up with better ideas, and Yoshizawa said that this was because the animators would be able to come up with better fights and effects overall.{{sfn|Maeda|Nakagami|Kawabata|Nishitani|2020|p=108}} Character designer and chief animation director Junichirou Taniguchi (from Doga Kobo) also said that he believed it was fine for the characters to appear more stylized (and off-model) during action scenes.{{sfn|Maeda|Nakagami|Kawabata|Nishitani|2020|p=110}}
Visual effects chief Hisato Shima stated that other studios commonly have animators and operators specializing in 3D (or certain aspects of the 3D process), but that Shaft artists tend to work in a more broad area and perform several tasks during anime production.{{Cite web|url= https://animeanime.jp/article/2021/10/24/64894.html|script-title= ja:『マギレコ』で解説する「シャフト流3DCG活用法」―手描き＋デジタルでさらなるクォリティーアップへ【あにつく2021オンライン】|trans-title= Explained in "MagiReco", "How to Use 3DCG the Shaft Way" - Further Quality Improvement Using Hand-Drawn and Digital Techniques (Anitsuke-2021 Online)|language= Japanese|website= AnimeAnime|date= October 24, 2021|access-date= October 24, 2021|archive-date= October 24, 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20211024120659/https://animeanime.jp/article/2021/10/24/64894.html|url-status= live}} Shaft's production pipeline often utilizes materials created during the normal production pipine (that is: layouts, key animation, in-between animation, finishing (painting/coloring), photography, editing) that work as temporary reference points for both 2D and 3D animators, and assist with camera angles, reference points, and other processes. Later in the production, these temporary materials are removed, and the final CG work is added. In order to counteract the issues that come with productions that have a mix of traditional/CG animation in regards to paper and digital canvas sizes, the studio developed a format that would be convenient for both processes by standardizing a 2156 x 1526 pixel screen size for the 3D artists. According to Kenjirou Okada, most studios would process things like tableware through 2D animation; but at Shaft, to guarantee a certain quality as opposed to sometimes distorted shapes, such materials are normally processed with CG instead.{{sfn|Maeda|Nakagami|Kawabata|Nishitani|2020|p=107}}
Although the Madoka Magica film trilogy was not Shaft's first work to be released in theaters, it's potentially their first work to be made in a "theatrical production." Animation producer Yasuhiro Okada said that in making the film trilogy, he was conscious of the fact that he had never been involved with a theatrical production and received advice from various people; however, he noted the uniqueness of Shaft's methods in production "Shaft animation", and found that the advice was not useful for Shaft works.{{sfn|Kizawa|Takayama|Saitou|2014|p=117}} For this reason, Okada set up the schedule so that the film was split into five units (A through E), and each one would be worked on in order rather than different parts moving forward at different times.{{sfn|Kizawa|Takayama|Saitou|2014|p=117}} This allowed for the work to prioritize a small, "elite" group of animators not just for the fact that it was a theatrical work, but so that director Yukihiro Miyamoto would ideally be able to see all of their cuts and supervise the work more closely.{{sfn|Kizawa|Takayama|Saitou|2014|p=117}}
Since the time Shinbo joined the studio, Shaft-produced series also had more cuts than the average anime series, as well as more corrections and retakes in Blu-ray and DVD releases than standard. According to Shinbo, the first storyboard drawn for the studio and his newfound collaboration, Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase episode 1, was 308 cuts.{{sfn|Takahashi|2019|p=111}} The standard anime is somewhere between 300-400 cuts;{{sfn|Kizawa|Nakamoto|Yanagi|2008|p=104}} however, as he continued to work for Shaft, the number of cuts in their anime continued to increase. By the time of Hidamari Sketch, episodes generally were 400-500 cuts per episode,{{sfn|Kizawa|Nakamoto|Yanagi|2008|p=104}} with other series like Monogatari and And Yet the Town Moves having an equivalent number.{{sfn|Takahashi|2019|p=111}} Considering the time and budget series like Hidamari Sketch had, Shinbo mentioned that he doesn't think any other studio would allow as many cuts and as many corrections to the home video release versions as Shaft.{{sfn|Kizawa|Nakamoto|Yanagi|2008|p=104}}
According to both Kubota and Shinbo, Shaft's productions as a whole also desire the involvement of the original authors or creators of the source material which they adapt in their productions.{{sfn|Shinbo|2012|p=251}} Kubota has also emphasized a particular focus on putting full studio effort into each of their works, and not increasing the number of productions purely to satiate demand.{{sfn|Rubin|2017|p=27}}
The uniqueness of Shaft's production system compared to other anime studios, with several directors and specialized roles per most series, has also introduced certain problems. Monogatari series character designer Akio Watanabe stated that Shaft's production system during the time of Bakemonogatari (2009) was "bad at the time."{{sfn|Kushida|2017|p=106}} Although Watanabe did not specify in what way, he mentioned that the series' pre-production could be difficult due to designs and finalizations needing to be checked by visual director Nobuyuki Takeuchi, series director Tatsuya Oishi, and director Shinbo (as opposed to one director's check).{{sfn|Kushida|2017|p=106}}
=Directors=
One of the core elements that represented Shaft as a unique studio among its peers came with Shinbo at the head of Shaft's directing department. Though Shaft had developed a relationship with other directors in the past like Kunitoshi Okajima and in-house talents fostered under him like Toshimasa Suzuki, Shinbo's position initiated a wave of new directors both joining and being trained by himself and, especially, Oonuma and Oishi.{{sfn|Paige|2017|p=20-21}} Although Suzuki left the company prior to Shinbo joining, he would still act as the assistant director for the studio and director's first project together, Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase; and Suzuki later remarked that Shinbo was the catalyst for Shaft's identity as a {{nihongo|"directing company"|演出の会社}}.{{Cite web|url= https://ddnavi.com/interview/1005788/a/|script-title= ja:15年振りのタッグが魅せる、日本アニメの表現力――『RWBY 氷雪帝国』鈴木利正（監督）＆冲方丁（シリーズ構成・脚本）対談（前編）|trans-title= The First Team-Up in 15 Years Brings us the Power of Expression of Japanese Animation - "RWBY: Ice Queendom" Talk with Toshimasa Suzuki (Director) and Tow Ubukata (Series Composition/Screenplay) (Part 1)|date= July 11, 2022|language= Japanese|access-date= July 12, 2022|interviewer= Hidekuni Shida|archive-date= July 12, 2022|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220712063323/https://ddnavi.com/interview/1005788/a/|url-status= live}} Almost all works produced by Shaft for the next 14 years involved Shinbo as either "director" or "chief director" with a "series director", "assistant director", "chief director", or "chief episode director" in active positions beneath him. Works produced after Shinbo's reign as chief director continued to use this system. The various credits actively participated in various parts of pre-production, production, and post-production.
Shaft's director credits:
- {{nihongo|Chief Director|総監督}} - Generally used for works in which Shinbo and another director are involved from the start, and which Shinbo often gives more freedoms to the directors to. Shinbo's role as "chief director" ranges from little-to-no active participation like in Katteni Kaizō,{{sfn|Takahashi|2019|p=143-150}} to active creative decisions in pre-production like scenario checks, storyboard checks and revisions, design supervision, and overall direction like in Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase, Monogatari series and Pretty Boy Detective Club.{{sfn|Aniplex|2021|p=12}}{{Cite magazine|magazine= Newtype|editor= Kado, Kiyoto|title= Newtype January 2025|publisher= Kadokawa Shoten|department= Midori Yoshizawa Interview|date=December 10, 2024|language= Japanese}}
- {{nihongo|Director|監督}} - The standard "director" credit used in most of the industry and oftentimes at Shaft.
- {{nihongo|Series Director|シリーズディレクター}} - The "series director" is generally given to directors who join a production partway through pre-production or a similar circumstance and are involved as a director generally following Shinbo's orders. Tatsuya Oishi joined Bakemonogatari after the 5th episode's storyboard orders were completed,{{sfn|Takahashi|2019|p=77}} Yuki Yase joined Hidamari Sketch x Honeycomb after the 8th episode's storyboards were completed,{{sfn|Kizawa|2013|p=108}} and Yukihiro Miyamoto joined Puella Magi Madoka Magica a few months before the series began to air (thus in production itself).{{sfn|Magica Quartet|2019|p=109}} Oishi, Yase, and Miyamoto subsequently received {{nihongo|director|監督}} credits for their respective sequel works as they were a part of the projects from the start with Shinbo taking on the {{nihongo|chief director|総監督}} credit. Miyamoto later clarified that there was no difference between his role in the Madoka TV series and films despite the credit differences, and seemingly only the amount of time he had been involved with had changed.{{sfn|Kizawa|Takayama|Saitou|2014|p=112}}
- {{nihongo|Chief Director|チーフディレクター}} - Despite the name, the credit has been used generally to refer to "assistant" or "series" directors. Hidamari Sketch "chief director" Ryouki Kamitsubo referred to himself as the "assistant" for the series;{{Cite Tweet|user= kamitsubonpu|author= Kamitsubo, Ryouki|date= March 18, 2011|number=48866560776998913|script-title=ja:そうそう、ついでだからひだまりスケッチに関する誤解も解いておこう。あれは肩書きこそチーフディレクターでしたが、実際は単なる補佐に過ぎません。ひだまりスケッチは一期から間違いなく新房監督作品です。|trans-title= Oh yeah, while we're at it, let's clear up some misunderstandings about Hidamari Sketch. Although my title was "chief director", I was actually just an assistant. Hidamari Sketch season 1 was definitely directed by Shinbo.}} and Suzuki referred to Kenjirou Okada, who was given a "chief director" credit, as the "series director" in an interview.{{Cite web |url=https://ddnavi.com/interview/1005788/a/|script-title=ja:15年振りのタッグが魅せる、日本アニメの表現力――『RWBY 氷雪帝国』鈴木利正（監督）＆冲方丁（シリーズ構成・脚本）対談（前編）|trans-title= The First Team-Up in 15 Years Brings us the Power of Expression of Japanese Animation - "RWBY: Ice Queendom" Talk with Toshimasa Suzuki (Director) and Tow Ubukata (Series Composition/Screenplay) (Part 1)|date= July 11, 2022|language= Japanese|access-date= July 12, 2022|interviewer= Hidekuni Shida}}
- {{nihongo|Director's Assistant|監督補佐}} - Used once for Suzuki on Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase.
- {{nihongo|Assistant Director|副監督}} - Despite the name, "assistant directors" at Shaft act similar to "series directors" or are like junior "directors." Naoyuki Tatsuwa, for example, was referred to as the "series director" for And Yet the Town Moves by Shinbo despite his official credit being "assistant director."{{sfn|Shinbo|2012|p=135}}
- {{nihongo|Chief Episode Director|チーフ演出}} - A credit usually describing a director closely involved in the production process of all episodes. Used only a few times at Shaft, Miyamoto described his role on the sequel Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei seasons as being like a "handyman" and doing a little bit of direction for all episodes, the openings and ending, as well as attending dubbing sessions and art meetings when assistant director Tatsuwa was unable to.{{sfn|Oguro|2011|p=39}}
- {{nihongo|Director|ディレクター}} - Used only in Magia Record season 1 to refer to directors given "series director" responsibility over select episodes.{{sfn|Maeda|Nakagami|Kawabata|Nishitani|2020|p=74}}{{Cite Tweet|number=1223901644275863552|user= gekidaninucurry|date= February 2, 2020|script-title=ja:【マギレコ 】 ３話は岡田さんコンテ演出。2、3話のシリーズディレクターでもあり、レナ達の細かな描写をディレクションして頂きました。 変身シーンはそれとは別にコンテから原画まで全てガッツアニメーター様にお願いしました。変身という名の自由時間|trans-title="MagiReco" {{!}} Episode 3 is directed by Okada-san. He was also the series director for episodes 2 and 3, and directed the detailed depiction of Rena and the others. {{!}} Apart from that, for the transformation scene, we asked the cut animator to do everything from the storyboard to the key animation.}}
Productions
=Anime television series=
=Anime films=
=Original video animations=
=Original net animations=
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" |
| scope="col" class="unsortable" width=10 | Year
! scope="col" | Title ! scope="col" | Director(s){{efn|name=DirectorsCol|For {{nihongo|Chief Director|総監督}}, {{nihongo|Director|監督}} and {{nihongo|Director's Assistant|監督補佐}} credits.}} ! scope="col" | Series director(s){{efn|name=SeriesDirectorsCol|For {{nihongo|Series Director|シリーズディレクター}}, {{nihongo|Chief Director|チーフディレクター}}, {{nihongo|Assistant Director|副監督}}, {{nihongo|Chief Episode Director|チーフ演出}}, and {{nihongo|Director|ディレクター}} credits.}} ! scope="col" | Animation producer(s) ! scope="col" | Source ! scope="col" | {{abbr|Eps.|Episodes}} ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | {{abbr|Refs.|References}} |
|---|
| scope="row" | 2016
|style=text-align:center |Akiyuki Shinbo (chief) |{{N/A}} |style=text-align:center |Kazuki Soumiya |Light novel |12 |{{cite web |title="暦物語"の検索結果 |url=https://mediaarts-db.bunka.go.jp/animation/search?q=%E6%9A%A6%E7%89%A9%E8%AA%9E |website=Media Arts Database |publisher=Agency for Cultural Affairs |access-date=August 1, 2020 |language=ja|archive-date=August 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200821090655/https://mediaarts-db.bunka.go.jp/animation/search?q=%E6%9A%A6%E7%89%A9%E8%AA%9E |url-status=live}} |
| scope="row" | 2021–2022
|style=text-align:center |Shouji Saeki |{{N/A}} |style=text-align:center |Kouichi Yasuda |Media-mix project |13 |
| scope = row | 2024
| Monogatari Series Off & Monster Season |style=text-align:center |Akiyuki Shinbo (chief) |{{N/A}} |style=text-align:center |Yuuya Matsukawa |Light novel |14 |
=Video game work=
= Other productions =
{{Columns-list|
- Shina Dark (OVA, March 21, 2008) {{endash}} four music video shorts for the manga by Bunjūrō Nakayama; directed by Naoyuki Konno, Shinpei Tomooka, Shin Oonuma, and Toshimasa Suzuki.{{cite web |author1=Loo, Egan |title=Shina Dark Anime Music Videos' Samples Posted Online |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2008-03-03/shina-dark-anime-dvd-video-digest-posted-online |website=Anime News Network |access-date=December 27, 2019 |date=March 3, 2008 |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612135819/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2008-03-03/shina-dark-anime-dvd-video-digest-posted-online |url-status=live }}{{Cite web|url= http://pen.serio.jp/highwaystar/works/comic-shina.html|title= シャイナ・ダルク ～黒き月の王と蒼碧の月の姫君～|language= Japanese|website= Highway Star (part of Yukari Higa's official website)|access-date= September 17, 2021|archive-date= September 17, 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210917041156/http://pen.serio.jp/highwaystar/works/comic-shina.html|url-status= live}}
- MAG Net (TV series, 2010) {{endash}} opening animation for the television series; directed by Tatsuya Oishi.{{Cite AV media |title= MAG Net|language= Japanese|script-quote=ja:アニメ制作 - 尾石達也 シャフト|trans-quote= Anime production - Tatsuya Oishi Shaft|time=opening credits}}
- Palutena's Revolting Dinner (ONA, March 19, 2012) {{endash}} two promotional shorts for Kid Icarus: Uprising; directed by Akiyuki Shinbo.{{cite web |title=Kid Icarus: Uprising - Watch Original 3D Animations! |url=https://www.nintendo.co.uk/games/oms/kidicarusuprising/anime/index.html |publisher=Nintendo UK |access-date=December 27, 2019 |archive-date=April 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405054600/https://www.nintendo.co.uk/games/oms/kidicarusuprising/anime/index.html |url-status=live }}
- Goddess of Light (ONA, June 10, 2014) {{endash}} Palutena character reveal trailer for Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rS5CJMAQ-TM |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/rS5CJMAQ-TM |archive-date=2021-12-13 |url-status=live|title=【スマブラ3DS・WiiU】 光の女神 |language=ja |author=Nintendo |author-link=Nintendo |date=June 10, 2014 |publisher=YouTube |access-date=March 28, 2016}}{{cbignore}}
- Okitegami Kyouko no Bibouroku x Monogatari (ONA, December 31, 2014) {{endash}} promotional video for Nisio Isin's Boukyaku Tantei Series, featuring characters from the Monogatari series; directed by Yukihiro Miyamoto.{{Cite AV media|script-title=ja:西尾維新最新作『掟上今日子の備忘録』×〈物語〉シリーズ コラボＣＭ第二弾|trans-title=Nisio Isin's Latest Work "Okitegami Kyouko no Bibouroku" x Monogatari Series Collaboration CM 2nd|url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYXusSjThKk |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/mYXusSjThKk |archive-date=2021-12-13 |url-status=live|language= Japanese|date= December 31, 2014|access-date= February 25, 2021}}{{cbignore}}
- IRoid: Koi no Yūkō Frontier (ONA, December 14, 2015) {{endash}} Promotional short for the dating simulator app IRoid by QUICK.{{Cite AV media|url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8JgNWY4xD8 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/e8JgNWY4xD8 |archive-date=2021-12-13 |url-status=live|script-title=ja:IRroid 恋の有効フロンティア PV 30秒.ver|trans-title= IRoid: Koi no Yūkō Frontier PV 30 Second Ver.|date= December 14, 2015|language= Japanese|access-date= February 25, 2021}}{{cbignore}}
- Kakushigoto (ONA, June 14, 2016) {{endash}} promotional short for the manga by Kōji Kumeta; directed by Yukihiro Miyamoto.{{Cite web |url=https://natalie.mu/comic/news/191197 |title=久米田康治×シャフトで「かくしごと」PV制作！神谷浩史＆安済知佳が出演 |trans-title=Kōji Kumeta x Shaft "Kakushigoto" PV Production! Featuring Hiroshi Kamiya & Chika Anzai |date=June 17, 2016 |website=Natalie |access-date=December 2, 2020 |archive-date=January 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210108094243/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/191197 |url-status=live }}
- Akuma no Memumemu-chan (ONA, January 22, 2018) {{endash}} promotional short for the manga by Keitarо̄ Yotsuya; directed by Seiya Numata.{{cite web |author1=Sherman, Jennifer |title=Akuma no Memumemu-chan Anime Short Streamed |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2018-01-22/akuma-no-memumemu-chan-anime-short-streamed/.126771 |website=Anime News Network |access-date=December 27, 2019 |date=January 22, 2018 |archive-date=January 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125002509/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2018-01-22/akuma-no-memumemu-chan-anime-short-streamed/.126771 |url-status=live }}
- "Ikebukuro PR Animation" (ONA, January 17, 2019) {{endash}} promotional short for the Ikebukuro district in Tokyo's Toshima ward; directed by Yukio Takatsu.{{cite web |author1=Loveridge, Lynzee |title=Studio Shaft's Ikebukuro Tourism Anime Premieres Online |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-01-18/studio-shaft-ikebukuro-tourism-anime-premieres-online/.142277 |website=Anime News Network |access-date=December 27, 2019 |date=January 18, 2019 |archive-date=December 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191227030602/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-01-18/studio-shaft-ikebukuro-tourism-anime-premieres-online/.142277 |url-status=live }}
- "Limited Time Fate/EXTRA CCC x Fate/Grand Order Special Event 'Deep Sea Dennou Rakudo SE.RA.PH' Announcement CM" (ONA, May 7, 2017) {{endash}} promotional short for a crossover event between the Fate/Extra CCC and Fate/Grand Order video games.{{Cite web| url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdT8HYLw9Jg |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/UdT8HYLw9Jg |archive-date=2021-12-13 |url-status=live|title= 期間限定Fate/EXTRA CCC x Fate/Grand Order スペシャルイベント「深海電脳楽土 SE.RA.PH」告知CM|publisher= YouTube|author= 【公式】Fate/Grand Order チャンネル|language= Japanese|date= May 7, 2017|access-date= November 4, 2021}}{{cbignore}}
- "Hungry Days" (ONA, May 21, 2019, September 12, 2019, December 5, 2019, February 7, 2020) {{endash}} series of four commercials for Nissin's Cup Noodles featuring characters from One Piece; directed by Yūsuke Takase{{cite web |author1=Morrissy, Kim |title=Witness Roronoa Zoro's High School Teenage Years in Cup Noodle Ad |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-05-22/witness-roronoa-zoro-high-school-teenage-years-in-cup-noodle-ad/.146972 |website=Anime News Network |access-date=December 27, 2019 |date=May 22, 2019 |archive-date=September 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190930052647/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-05-22/witness-roronoa-zoro-high-school-teenage-years-in-cup-noodle-ad/.146972 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |author1=Loveridge, Lynzee |title=Cup Noodle Shows One Piece's Nami Struggle with High School Life |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-09-13/cup-noodle-shows-one-piece-nami-struggle-with-high-school-life/.151065 |website=Anime News Network |access-date=December 27, 2019 |date=September 13, 2019 |archive-date=December 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191227065406/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-09-13/cup-noodle-shows-one-piece-nami-struggle-with-high-school-life/.151065 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |author1=Morrissy, Kim |title=Latest One Piece Cup Noodle Ad Shows Vivi's Heartbreaking Departure |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-12-06/latest-one-piece-cup-noodle-ad-shows-vivi-heartbreaking-departure/.154046 |website=Anime News Network |access-date=December 27, 2019 |date=December 6, 2019 |archive-date=January 5, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200105115847/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-12-06/latest-one-piece-cup-noodle-ad-shows-vivi-heartbreaking-departure/.154046 |url-status=live }}
- Choujuu Giga Gao Road Chocolate Dai 0-dan (ONA, February 20, 2021) {{endash}} promotional commercial directed by Kiyoyuki Amano.{{Cite web|url=https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000382.000014685.html|script-title=ja:新発売の『超獣戯牙ガオロードチョコ』のTVCMが明日から全国放送開始！監督はカヤックの天野清之が担当。|trans-title=The TV CM of the newly released "Super Beast Gi Fang Gao Road Chocolate" will start broadcasting nationwide tomorrow! The director is Kiyoyuki Amano of [Omoshiro Houjin Kayac]|website=PR Times|date=February 19, 2021|access-date=February 25, 2021|archive-date=February 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219022924/https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000382.000014685.html|url-status=live}}
- Taishou Romance (music video, September 16, 2021) {{endash}} music video for the song by YOASOBI; directed by Yūsuke Takase.{{Cite web |url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJQ9ig_d8yY |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/wJQ9ig_d8yY |archive-date=2021-12-13 |url-status=live|title= YOASOBI「大正浪漫」Official Music Video|website=YouTube |date= September 16, 2021|language= Japanese|access-date= September 16, 2021}}{{cbignore}}
- Bakemonogatari (ONA, February 17, 2022) {{endash}} promotional video for the manga adaptation of Bakemonogatari by Oh! Great; directed by Akiyuki Shinbo.{{Cite web|url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMHtiWvDQxA|script-title= ja:漫画『化物語』シャフト制作特別PV|trans-title= Manga "Bakemonogatari" Special Shaft Production PV|publisher= YouTube|author= shonenmagazine official|date= February 17, 2022|access-date= February 17, 2022|archive-date= February 16, 2022|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220216234123/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMHtiWvDQxA|url-status= live}}
- J:COM x U25 Kankyou wo Kangaeru Project CM (ONA, July 3, 2023) {{endash}} promotional video for J:COM's environmental awareness "U25 Kankyou wo Kangaeru Project"; directed by Ryou Shimura.{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1CaNdW89qk|script-title=ja:J:COMサステナビリティ活動 {{!}} U25 環境を考えるプロジェクト アニメCM 30秒ver.|trans-title= J:COM Sustainability Activities {{!}} U25 Thinking About the Environment Project Anime CM 30 Second Ver.|publisher= YouTube|author= J:COM|date= July 3, 2023|access-date= July 3, 2023}}
- "Baton Concept Movie" (ONA, December 1, 2023) {{endash}} corporate short film promoting "Baton", an education-focused app; directed by Yūsuke Takase.{{Cite web |url=https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000151.000012901.html|script-title=ja:『「遊ぶように学ぶ世界」とは？』QuizKnockを運営する株式会社batonがコーポレートムービーを公開！ 伊沢拓司の声の出演やふくらP制作の高難易度謎解きも登場|trans-title= "A World Where People Learn as They Play?" Baton Inc., operated by QuizKnock, releases its corporate movie! Featuring the voice of Takuji Izawa and High-Difficulty Riddles Produced by FukuraP!|website= PR Times|language= Japanese|date= December 1, 2023|access-date= December 3, 2023}}
- Fate/Grand Order Explore Movie 2024 "Wanted" (ONA, August 3, 2024) {{endash}} promotional short film for the Fate/Grand Order mobile game; directed by Hiroto Nagata.{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8ECq4LBOkM|title= Fate/Grand Order Explore Movie 2024 “WANTED！”|date= August 3, 2024|website= YouTube|publisher= Fate/Grand Order|language= Japanese|access-date= August 3, 2024}}
}}
=Gross outsource=
Episodes, series, and other projects in which Shaft was not the prime contractor for but subcontracted to for animation services either across the entire series or to produce an episode or part of the work. These do not include minor outsourcing credits such as key animation, in-between animation, or cel-painting. Gross outsourcing is also referred to as "full" outsourcing.{{Cite web |url=https://blog.sakugabooru.com/2021/06/09/what-actually-is-anime-outsourcing-the-historical-context-and-current-reality-of-animes-life-support/|title= What Actually is Anime Outsourcing? – The Historical Context and Current Reality of Anime's Life Support|website= Sakugablog|author= Cirugeda, Kevin "Yuyucow"|date= June 9, 2021|access-date= July 17, 2023}} The studio was active in gross outsourcing for companies and other studios from the time its animation department was formed in the early 80s up until 2004 when the company switched to almost exclusively contributing only to its own productions. Since 2019, the studio has occasionally worked as a gross outsource company for other studios once again.
| role="presentation" class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed plainrowheaders"
|+ class="nowrap" | List of gross outsources |
| scope="col" class="unsortable" | Year
! scope="col" | Title ! scope="col" | Primary contractor(s) ! scope="col" | Director(s) ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Episode(s) ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Note(s) ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | {{abbr|Refs.|References}} |
|---|
| scope="row" | 1980–1981
|Time Bokan Series: Time Patrol Tai Otasukeman |Hiroshi Sasagawa |11, 19, 21, 25, 36, 47, 53 | |Credited as {{nihongo|Production Assistance|制作協力}} in respective episodes. |
| scope="row" | 1982–1983
|Hitotsuboshi-ke no Ultra Baasan |Masuji Harata |1–13 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 1983
|Superbook 2 |Tatsunoko Production |Masakazu Higuchi |1–26 | |
| Serendipity the Pink Dragon
|Nobuo Oonuki |11–26 | |
| scope="row" | 1984
|Knack Productions |Kazuyuki Okasako |1–15 | |
| scope="row" | 1984–1985
|Zuiyo |Masakazu Higuchi |1–23 | |
| scope="row" | 1987–1988
|Gisaburō Sugii |3, 8, 15, 21, 27, 38, 43, 48 | |
| scope="row" | 1988
|Hiatari Ryōkō! Kasumi: Yume no Naka ni Kimi ga Ita |Group TAC |Kimiharu Oguma | |TV film |
| scope="row" | 1990–1991
|Tatsunoko Production |Kunitoshi Okajima |5, 9, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, 27, 30, 32 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="3" | 1991
|Ushiro no Shoumen Daare |Seiji Arihara | |Film |
| Oh! My Konbu
|Tetsuo Imazawa |4, 8, 12, 16, 20 | |{{efn|Credited as {{nihongo|Animation Production|アニメーション製作}} for respective episodes. However, Studio Toriumi produced most of the episodes, and neither Shaft nor Toriumi were primary contractors for the work.}} |
| Dark Genesis
|Tatsunoko Production |Yoshihisa Matsumoto |1 |OVA |
| scope="row" | 1992–1993
|Little Twins | |Toshio Hirata |Unknown |OVA |
| scope="row" | 1994
|Goal Field Hunter |Image Key |Masakazu Higuchi |Unknown | |
| scope="row" | 1994–1995
|Tatsunoko Production |Kunitoshi Okajima | | |
| scope="row" | 1995
|Group TAC |Hitoshi Nanba |8, 23, 29, 46 | |Credited as {{nihongo|Animation Production Assistance|アニメーション制作協力}} in respective episodes. |
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 1996–1997
|Legend of the Galactic Heroes |K-Factory |Noboru Ishiguro et al. |87, 90, 93, 96, 99, 102, 105, 108 |OVA |
| Kiko-chan's Smile
|Magic Bus |Setsuko Shibuichi |1, 4, 14, 17, 23, 38, 50 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="4" | 1997
|Legend of Crystania: The Chaos Ring |2 |OVA |
| Mach Go Go Go: Restart
|Tatsunoko Production |Hiroshi Sasagawa et al. |5, 9, 14, 19, 25 | |
| Hareluya II Boy
|Triangle Staff |Kiyoshi Egami |3 | |
| Revolutionary Girl Utena
|15, 20, 29, 37 | |
| scope="row" | 1997–1998
|AIC |1–26 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="3" | 1998
|A Hundred Billion Stars, a Hundred Billion Lights |K-Factory |Noboru Ishiguro et al. |5–8, 17 |OVA |
| Generator Gawl
|Tatsunoko Production |4, 6, 10 | |
| Silent Möbius
|Radix |Hideki Tonokatsu |1–26 (except 14, 19, 23) | |{{Sfn|Shinbo|2012|p=240}} |
| scope="row" | 1998–1999
|Totsugeki! Pappara-tai |Magic Bus |Kenichi Maejima |5, 10, 16 | |
| scope="row" rowspan = "7" | 1999
|Triangle Staff |2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 | |
| Dual! Parallel Trouble Adventure
|AIC |Katsuhito Akiyama |1–13 | |
| Power Stone
|Pierrot |9, 16 | |
| Magic User's Club
|Triangle Staff, Madhouse |Junichi Sato |10 | |
| Dai-Guard
|Seiji Mizushima |11 | |
| Now and Then, Here and There
|AIC |5, 10 | |
| A Pair of Queens
|Triangle Staff |Takashi Watanabe |2, 4, 7, 9 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 1999–2000
|AIC |Masami Abe |4, 10, 16, 22 | |
| Excel Saga
|J.C.Staff |4, 9, 14, 19, 24 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="4" | 2000
|Madhouse |Takashi Watanabe |2, 5, 7, 11–12 | |
| NieA_7
|Triangle Staff |11 | |
| Sakura Wars
|Madhouse |Ryūtarō Nakamura |1–25 | |
| Kita e.: Pure Session
|Studio D-Volt |Mitsuko Kase | |OVA |
| scope="row" | 2000–2001
|Pierrot |Hayato Date |3, 9, 15, 21, 27–50 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="4" | 2001
|Fumitsugu Yamaguchi | |Film |
| Sister Princess
|Kiyotaka Ohata |4 | |
| The SoulTaker
|Tatsunoko Production/VCR |10 | |{{sfn|Maeda|Hiraiwa|2007|p=1}} |
| Kikaider 01: The Animation
|Radix, Studio OX |Keitarou Motonaga |2 |OVA |
| scope="row" rowspan="3" | 2001–2002
|Yuusuke Yamamoto |2, 5, 8, 19, 24-25, 27 | |
| Android Kikaider: The Animation
|Radix, Studio OX |2, 7–8, 12 | |{{sfn|Shinbo|2012|p=247}} |
| Cyborg 009: The Cyborg Soldier
|Japan Vistec |3, 27-28, 31, 34, 44, 46 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 2002
|14 | |
| WXIII: Patlabor the Movie 3
|Madhouse |Fumihiko Takayama | |Film |
| scope="row" rowspan="4" | 2003
|19 | |
| Dear Boys
|A.C.G.T |Susumu Kudou |3, 7, 12, 18, 23 | |
| Kino's Journey
|A.C.G.T |Ryūtarō Nakamura |7 | |
| Neon Genesis Evangelion: Girlfriend of Steel 2nd
| | |Video game |
| scope="row" rowspan="6" | 2004
|Radix |Jun Takada |2 | |Credited as {{nihongo|Assisting Production|協力プロダクション}} in respective episodes. |
| Maburaho
|J.C.Staff |11 | |
| Gilgamesh
|Group TAC, Japan Vistec |Masahiko Murata |16, 22 | |
| Tetsujin 28-go
|Yasuhiro Imagawa |3, 6, 9 | |
| Gakuen Alice
|Group TAC |Takahiro Omori |4, 10 | |
| Uta Kata
|4 | |
| scope="row" | 2019
|The Quintessential Quintuplets |Satoshi Kuwabara |11 | |
| scope="row" rowspan="3" | 2023
|Tomoya Tanaka |7 | |
| The Café Terrace and Its Goddesses
|Tezuka Productions |Satoshi Kuwabara |9 | |
| Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead
|Bug Films |Kazuki Kawagoe |2–5 | |
| scope="row" | 2024
|Mashle 2nd Season |A-1 Pictures |Tomoya Tanaka |2 | |
Notable staff
=Representative staff=
{{div col}}
- Hiroshi Wakao (founder, first president (1975~2004), and chairman (2004~))
- Mitsutoshi Kubota (Second president (2004~), managing director (1995~2004), and color designer (1981~1995))
- Kouji Tanoue (board member, licensing division manager, former production manager)
- Tamiko Nishimaki (board member, former color designer)
- Miku Ooshima (board member, producer, and screenplay writer)
- Nobuki Maki (board member, former production manager)
- Natsuko Kubota (board member, former color designer)
- Kayoko Mizusawa (board member)
{{div col end}}
=Animation producers=
{{div col}}
- Shigeyuki Amemiya (2006~present)
- Kazumasa Amitani (2007~present)
- Tadao Iwaki (2010~2011, 2014~2017){{sfn|Kizawa|Takayama|Saitou|2014|p=117}}
- Kousuke Matsunaga (2010~2018)
- Kazuki Soumiya (2010~2019)
- Kouichi Yasuda (2010~2022){{cite AV media| people =Kouichi Yasuda| title =Kouichi Yasuda Interview, Assault Lily Bouquet| type = Blu-Ray| publisher = Funimation|date= January 18, 2022}}
- Ryuusuke Suzuki (2010~present)
- Yasuhiro Okada (2010~present){{sfn|Kizawa|Takayama|Saitou|2014|p=117}}
- Hitoshi Fujikawa (2012~2015)
- Takuo Yukinaga (2012~2019){{Cite web |url=https://blog.sakugabooru.com/2021/03/08/kizumonogatari-staff-interview-vfx-supervisor-michiya-kato/|title= KIZUMONOGATARI STAFF INTERVIEW: VFX SUPERVISOR MICHIYA KATO|website= Sakugablog|author= Cirugeda, Kevin "yuyucow"|date= March 8, 2021|access-date= April 2, 2024}}
- Yuuya Matsukawa (2012~present)
{{div col end}}
=Production staff=
{{div col}}
- {{ill|Masahiko Murata|ja|むらた雅彦}} (animator, 1982~1987)
- Hiroyuki Morita (animator, 1987)
- Yutaka Nagaushi (production assistant, 1987~1995; founder of {{ill|Digital Network Animation|ja|デジタルネットワークアニメーション}})
- Toshimasa Suzuki (animator, 1987~2000; currently freelances as a director)
- Yoshiaki Itou (character designer and animator, 1987~present){{Cite web |url=https://www.otaquest.com/yoshiaki-ito-interview-pt-1/|title= The Art Of Animating "Delicious": Interview With Yoshiaki Ito Pt. 1|website= Otaquest|date= October 10, 2019|access-date= March 8, 2023}}
- {{ill|Masahiko Nakada|ja|大田和寛}} (animator, 1990~1995)
- Makoto Kohara (animator, 1996~2001; founder of Diomedéa)
- {{ill|Mai Ootsuka|ja|大塚舞}} (animator, 1998~2003)
- {{ill|Naoko Shiraishi|ja|白石直子}} (production assistant, 2000~2002; later founded Millepensee)
- Nobuhiro Sugiyama (character designer and animator, 2001~present)
- Kazuya Shiotsuki (character designer and animator, 2002~present){{Cite web |url=https://animecorner.me/interview-quintessential-quintuplets-special-junichiro-tanaka-keiichiro-ohchi-kazuya-shiotsuki/|title= Discussing The Quintessential Quintuplets∽ Special With Junichiro Tanaka, Keiichiro Ohchi and Kazuya Shiotsuki|website= Anime Corner|date= July 29, 2023|author1= Himmelheber, Eric|author2= Sarca|access-date= July 29, 2023}}
- Yasuko Watanabe (color designer, 2000~present)
- {{ill|Kazuhiro Oota|ja|大田和寛}} (character designer and animator, 2004~2009)
- Shin Oonuma (director, 2004~2009)
- Naoyuki Tatsuwa (director, 2004~2015)
- Tatsuya Oishi (director, 2004~2018)
- Akiyuki Shinbo (director, 2004~present)
- Tomoyuki Itamura (director, 2007~2017)
- Yukihiro Miyamoto (director, 2007~present){{efn|Miyamoto may have acted as a freelance director for much of his time with Shaft, but Megami Magazine referred to him and directors Kouji Matsumura and Midori Yoshizawa as {{nihongo|"directors belonging to Shaft"|シャフト所属の演出家}} in a 2023 interview.{{cite magazine|magazine=Megami Magazine|title=Megami Magazine November 2023|at={{lang|ja|『五等分の花嫁』メインスタッフ座談会}} ["The Quintessential Quintuplets∽" Main Staff Roundtable]|publisher=Gakken|date=September 29, 2023|language=ja|asin= B0CJ5TSXRS}}}}
- Yuki Yase (director, 2010~2017)
- Hiroki Yamamura (character designer and animator, 2012~present){{efn|Yamamura worked for Studio Pastoral between 2004~2012 and was oftentimes contracted for work by Shaft. Following his departure, he worked exclusively with Shaft, though his unemployment during the time period is ambiguous. In 2020, he and animator Genichirou Abe participated on Onimai: I'm Now Your Sister! (2023) listed as members of "(Shaft)", and his Twitter account briefly mentioned his affiliation with the company.{{Cite web |url=https://twitter.com/y_kaele|script-title=ja:山村洋貴(シャフト)／お仕事がアニメ！|trans-title= Hiroki Yamamura (Shaft)/My job is anime!|website= Twitter|access-date= March 8, 2023}}}}
- Hisaharu Iijima (art department technical advisor/art director, 2020~present)
{{div col end}}
=Notable associated freelancers=
{{div col}}
- Akio Watanabe (character designer and animator)
- Hajime Ueda (illustrator)
- Ume Aoki (illustrator)
- Gekidan Inu Curry (directors and animators)
- Ryouki Kamitsubo (director)
- Kenichi Ishikura (director)
- Shinichi Omata (director)
- Nobuyuki Takeuchi (director and animator)
- Shouji Saeki (director)
- Yasuomi Umetsu (director)
- Hajime Ootani (director)
- Kenjirou Okada (director)
{{div col end}}
See also
- Mushi Production—founder Hiroshi Wakao was a part of Mushi Production prior to Shaft's foundation
- Gainax—worked closely with Shaft in the early-to-mid 2000s
- Millepensee—founded by ex-Shaft production manager Naoko Shiraishi
- Diomedéa—founded by ex-Shaft animator Makoto Kohara
- Silver Link—ex-Shaft director Shin Oonuma works with Silver Link in a similar position to Shinbo's at Shaft
Notes
=Production notes=
{{Notelist}}
=Credit notes=
{{notelist-lr}}
=Works cited=
- {{cite book|script-title=ja:この醜くも美しい世界公式ビジュアルブック|trans-title=This Ugly Yet Beautiful World Official Visual Book|last1=Suzuki|first1=Akito| last2=Harada|first2=Nobukatsu| last3=Kirikata|first3=Runta|language=Japanese|publisher= Media Works|year=2004|ISBN=978-4840229050}}
- {{cite web|script-title=ja:アニメ新表現宣言！新房監督作品の奥にアニメ表現の最先端を見た！|trans-title= Declaration of a New Expression for Anime! I saw the Cutting Edge of Anime Expression in Director Shinbo's Work!|url=http://www.p-tina.net/interview/81|author1-last= Maeda|author1-first=Hisashi|author2-last= Hiraiwa|author2-first= Shinsuke|publisher= Tamon Creative|language= Japanese|year= 2007|access-date= July 17, 2022}}
- {{cite book|title=Hidamari Sketch Album|publisher= Houbunsha|editor1-first= Yukito|editor1-last=Kizawa|editor2-first=Muneo|editor2-last=Nakamoto|editor3-last=Yanagi|editor3-first=Yuuichi|year= 2008|isbn= 978-4832277403}}
- {{cite book|trans-title=Puella Magi Madoka Magica Official Guidebook you are not alone.|script-title=ja:魔法少女まどか☆マギカ公式ガイドブック you are not alone.|publisher= Houbunsha|author=Magica Quartet|year= 2011|isbn= 978-4832240612}}
- {{cite book|script-title=ja:さよなら絶望先生全書(ANIMESTYLE ARCHIVE)|trans-title= Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei Complete ANIMESTYLE ARCHIVE|date= May 2, 2011|publisher= Anime Style|author-last= Oguro|author-first=Yuuichirou|language= Japanese|isbn=978-4902948080}}
- {{cite book|script-title=ja:新房語|trans-title=Shinbogatari|last= Shinbo|first= Akiyuki|language= Japanese|year= 2012|publisher= Ichijinsha|isbn=978-4758012591}}
- {{cite book|script-title=ja:ひだまりスケッチデイズ -TVアニメ公式ガイドブック-|trans-title= Hidamari Sketch Days: TV Anime Official Guidiebook|publisher= Houbunsha|editor1-first= Yukito|editor1-last=Kizawa|year= 2013|isbn= 978-4832277403}}
- {{Cite book|script-title=ja:劇場版魔法やまどかマギカ[新編]叛逆の物語公式ガイドブック only you.|trans-title= Movie Version Puella Magi Madoka Magica [New Edition] Story of Rebellion Official Guidebook only you.|editor1-first=Yukito|editor1-last=Kizawa| editor2-first=Atsushi|editor2-last=Takayama| editor3-first=Fusano|editor3-last=Saitou| publisher=Houbunsha|year=2014|ISBN=978-4832244290}}
- {{cite thesis |last=Rubin |first= Lucy Paige|year=2017|title= Between Comedy and Despair: The House Style of Studio Shaft|type= Bachelor of the Arts|publisher= Wesleyan University|url= https://digitalcollections.wesleyan.edu/object/ir-978|access-date=May 24, 2021}}
- {{cite book |editor-last=Kushida |editor-first= Makoto|year=2017|script-title=ja: 〈物語〉Febri |asin= B075QWP3NZ|trans-title= "Monogatari" Febri|publisher= Ichijinsha|language= Japanese}}
- {{cite book |editor-last= Takahashi|editor-first= Yumi|date=November 23, 2019|title= Akiyuki Shimbo x Shaft Chronicle|publisher= Dotcom|language= Japanese|isbn= 978-4835457017}}
- {{cite book|script-title=ja:マギアレコード 魔法少女まどか☆マギカ外伝 TVアニメ公式ガイドブック 1巻|trans-title=Magia Record Puella Magi Madoka Magica TV Anime Official Guidebook Volume 1|year=2020|publisher=Houbunsha|last1=Maeda|first1=Hisashi|last2=Nakagami|first2=Yoshikatsu|last3=Kawabata|first3=Takeshi|last4=Nishitani|first4=Nanako|
language=Japanese|isbn=978-4832272019}}
- {{cite book|publisher= Aniplex|author= Aniplex|year= 2021|title= Pretty Boy Detective Club Vol. 5 Special Booklet}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|Shaft (animation studio)}}
- {{Official website|http://www.shaft-web.co.jp}} {{in lang|ja}}
- {{Anime News Network|company|677|Shaft}}
{{Shaft Animation Studio}}
{{Shaft films}}
{{Japanese animation studios}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Japanese companies established in 1975
Category:Animation studios in Tokyo
Category:Mass media companies established in 1975